Chapter 4

Hermione spent the rest of her day walking on a cloud, ecstatic that she would be apprenticing under Snape, the one teacher who never praised her for her work. She took his offer as the one and only compliment he would ever likely give her. As she approached her last class, Defense Against the Dark Arts, his warning about how difficult it was going to be reverberated around her head. As she took her seat at the back of the class, the sight of her new professor jolted her out of her head. He looked so similar to Sirius Black they could have easily been brothers. She had to admit that he was quite handsome in a rugged disheveled kind of way. His black hair stuck out slightly, looking like he had gotten out of bed in a rush while still trying to look professional. The only big difference between him and Sirius were his piercing blue eyes that seemed to look right into one's soul. As Hermione completed her analysis of her new teacher, he started talking to the classroom.

"Hello everyone, my name is professor Cyprus, I will be your new Defense Against the Dark Art's professor. As you may or may not know, this position had been cursed by the Dark Lord, making it impossible for any professor to stay for more than a year. I can imagine that this never-ending rotation of professor's has been exhausting and has most likely affected your studies. I've also heard of students organizing defense lessons in their own time...what was the group called? Dumbledore's army isn't that right miss Granger?" At the professor's question Hermione shrunk in her seat slightly as every pair of eyes was on her.

"Yes professor" Replied Hermione slightly blushing and looking down before looking back up to see her professor wink at her before resuming his speech.

"That is exactly the type of initiative I like to see in this classroom. As you will learn this semester, this will be an incredibly 'hands on' type of classroom setting. I will not be grading you on the ability to write an essay about a spell, but rather on the ability to cast spells. As many of you fought in the final battle, some spells may come easier than others. We will also be examining the history of the Dark Arts. Often times, we fear what we do not understand as the line between light and dark is not always obvious. We as a class will strive to find and understand how the Dark Arts represent the grey in the light and in the dark, the good and the bad."

As the professor assigned the readings for the upcoming semester, Hermione was lost in thought, mainly thinking about her former professor and dear friend Remus Lupin. How she missed him and his gentle nature, when she had used her time turner in her third year she had frequently visited Lupin in his office. She had used his office as a refuge, not only to avoid herself literally, but she found that she and Lupin bonded during her time in his office. They had talked about Harry and his parents, his adventures at Hogwarts, and his life as a werewolf. He had even confided in her the prank that almost got professor Snape killed, how it troubled him that Sirius and James had plotted it, and how he viewed his two best friends very differently after that night. Once her classes were finished and had to give her time turner back, she and Lupin lost contact once he resigned from Hogwarts, only occasionally seeing each other during order meetings and at the Burrow. His death at the battle of Hogwarts was a big catalyst in her decision to come back and finish her education. She had always admired how curious, intellectual, and well read her professor was. She hated to admit it but she had had a bit of a crush on him in her earlier years, especially after spending so much time alone in his office and having some fairly lively debates. At the thought of her feelings towards her former professor, she couldn't help but compare him to Ron. Before she could delve into the comparison much further, the bell signaling the end of the day rang.

"Thank you for your attention and time today everyone, don't forget to complete your readings for next class and to practice the spells on the board." Said professor Cyprus as the class rushed out.

By the end of her first day, Hermione was completely exhausted, having a full course load as well as knowing full well how Snape was going to make her work incredibly hard as his apprentice. As she climbed the steps to her own private bedroom in Gryffindor tower all she could think of was what she had hid in her trunk. She had hidden a few packs of muggle cigarettes; they had become her favorite vice quite quickly after the war. She saw just how much damage alcohol had done to some former war heroes, especially George. Since Fred's death, the former twin had fallen fairly hard into the hands of alcohol and any drugs he could find. As she lit her cigarette, Hermione thought about anything else but the darkness surrounding almost every surviving war hero. No one had been left unscathed, no one had come out without losing someone they loved.

Taking drags out of her cigarette, Hermione felt so much calmer as she looked over the great lake shining in the setting sun. Hermione couldn't help but blush a little when she thought of how professor Cyprus had winked at her in class. Hermione had never felt particularly sought after for her looks; it was only after McCormack had invited her to Slughorn's party that Ron had shown any real interest and been outwardly jealous. Even then his attention had only lasted so long since she had very publicly rejected McCormack, therefore Ron felt secure enough to put her back on the shelf as he pursued Lavender and other conquests, knowing she would still be there when he was finally ready to be with her. Hermione felt a wave of bitterness hit her at the thought of being shelved like one of her precious books. With that thought, Hermione flicked her finished cigarette out the window and made her way down for dinner.

Dinner was a lively and overwhelming affair, each first-year was debating which house they would be sorted, which one was the best, and their new and exciting class. Hermione admired how lively they all were, how their eyes still held that glamour of light and excitement. As the feast came to an end, professor McGonagall approached the podium to finally start the sorting process. As McGonagall started naming to students to come to the front, Hermione felt a nudge from Neville.

"Psst...Hermione over here, you want in on the bets were making for which student goes where?"" Whispered Neville.

Hermione laughed and whispered back "What are we betting? And how much?"

"I have some sweets from Honeydukes I'd be willing to bet, but we could add some real galleons if you're up to it" Answered Neville with a playful smirk.

"Alright I'm up for it, I bet you 5 galleons this nervous one is going to Hufflepuff" Said Hermione.

"You're on!" Replied Neville.

"Hufflepuff!" Screamed the hat.

Neville frowned as he reluctantly pulled out his money, Hermione laughed

As the sorting ceremony wore on, Neville lost a total of 25 galleons to Hermione as she kept guessing correctly, especially when it came down to students being sorted in Slytherin. Halfway through Hermione looked at the time realizing she would be late to Snape's office.

"I have to go Neville, let's call it even and you can just buy me some butterbeer when we go to Hogsmeade."

"Sounds good Hermione, remind me to never bet on anything with you" Neville replied playfully.

Hermione raced down to the dungeons, she only had about a minute before she would be 'late' in Snape standards. She picked up the pace and arrived at exactly 7:00 pm, albeit very out of breath.

"Enter!" Called out from the classroom.